Loving Memory
by drimh
Summary: Precognition - the ability to see the future. Kohaku recognizes her new abilities, and with the help of SPR can she prevent the coming tragedy or will she be too late? R&R!
1. Chapter 1: Suicidal

_The future is a fragile thing. Like a painting, one mistake throws the whole thing off. Nothing is set in stone; one small act done wrong could send everything tumbling downhill._

**CASE ONE**  
_Lonely Girl I_

"I'm home!" a dark blond haired girl called out as she entered her house, dropping the shopping bags that had been cutting into her fingers on the floor. She rounded the corner, finding her older sister frantically flipping through papers at the kitchen table. "Found us another place?"

The older woman nodded, pushing her reading glasses on top of her head. "This one's at an inn with reports of seeing a girl in room 13, standing on a blood stain on the floor and disappearing into thin air. The blood stain appears every Thursday at five thirty-seven PM like clockwork. They've had to replace the carpets every time, because the stains won't come out."

"Ugh, Rei… Blood? Really?"

"Oh stop it you," she told her younger sister, cocking her head to the side. "You really need to get over that fear of yours. This should be perfect practice."

She whirled around, going back to get the bags, and began putting everything away, ignoring Reiko's jabs at her phobia. "Sure," she muttered, tossing the plastic bags in the trash.

"Come on Kohaku. You'll be fine. You've been through worse, after all." Reiko let out her quirky little laugh, throwing an arm around her sister's shoulder. "We're leaving tomorrow, and I reserved us a room for tomorrow night, so you might want to grab some clothes for the next day, since I know just how forgetful you are."

"At least I'm not _old_," Kohaku muttered under her breath.

"Ah, I didn't hear you. It must be from my _old age_," Reiko hissed, squeezing the blonde's shoulders a little harder than necessary.

"Okay, okay, I get it," Kohaku cried out loudly, smacking Reiko's arm. "Now let me go so I can pack." The older woman released her grip and shooed the light haired girl away, turning back to her papers.

* * *

Sitting in the car, Kohaku and Reiko stared up at the 20-room inn. "Looks old," the younger girl commented, leaning down to grab her bag. Reiko reached back to grab her own bag and the manila folder containing their case. She opened it up quickly, grabbing a pen and writing a few things down before snapping it shut again and opening the car door. Kohaku followed, adjusting the strap on her bag. They were greeted by the owner of the inn, Satou Jin and his wife Kazue. They'd had a significant loss in business since the haunting had begun. They'd recently inherited the inn from Jin's father, who mentioned there'd been a girl who committed suicide there.

"It's haunted," Kazue stated as she led them to their room, "because it's thirteen, after all. I doubt much will change if you do whatever you're going to with it."

Jin had mentioned that when she was young, his old wife had been raised to be extremely superstitious as everyone in her family, and blamed the haunting on plain misfortune. Kazue refused many times to enter the room herself, and refrained from doing so as she unlocked the door for them. Reiko nodded her head as thanks, and Kohaku did as well, giving the woman a worn smile. They closed the door behind them.

"Well," Kohaku began, glancing around the room. "Feel anything?"

"It's faint. But I can feel it."

Kohaku glanced down at the floor where the carpet was just a shade lighter than the rest. She gulped. _I guess that's where the stain kept appearing._ Clutching her stomach, she flopped down on the bed as her sister began blessing the room. _It's Thursday, too._ Glancing at the clock on the nightstand, she was sickened to see that it was five thirty on the dot. Grimacing, she rolled over, face hidden in the pillow.

"Hurry up," she groaned, voice muffled. "I don't want to stay longer than necessary."

"Oh, quiet you," Reiko replied after she finished up. "I swear you act twelve." The woman laughed, plopping onto the bed next to Kohaku. "We should be done by three or so tomorrow. I want to make sure this girl is gone. Ah!" Kohaku lifted her head to see Reiko staring at the clock, which read 5:37. Shivering as Reiko looked over to the floor and began scouring it for any red, the younger girl buried her face in the pillow again.

"It's there, isn't it?"

"Actually no." Reiko smirked. "So you can rest without worries tonight."

Reluctantly lifting her head from the pillow, Kohaku rolled back over, staring at the ceiling, which she'd been told was recently repainted due to stains from leaks. _This place just can't escape any type of stain, can it?_ Chuckling to herself-God knows why-she hopped up and said, "How about dinner?"

"Sounds good," Reiko said, pulling her shoes back on. "You're driving."

Kohaku grimaced. "Why? You never trust me with driving."

"Well, I'm tired from driving all the way here, so I'm making an exception." Tossing the keys to her sister, Reiko headed out the door, Kohaku trailing behind.

* * *

The sisters were awoken at five-thirty AM by a shrill shriek emanating from downstairs. Together they rushed down in their pajamas to find Kazue, hands covering her mouth, and Jin talking heatedly on the phone.

"Yes, you can go ahead and come today. Goddamn medium can't do anything worth sh-"

He hung up the phone as Reiko stepped forward, asking boldly, "What's going on?"

"Your little exorcism or whatever-"

"Blessing," Kohaku corrected quickly.

"_Blessing_ my ass!" The man began walking in circles, clearly fuming. "That thing's not _gone_. Some job you did."

"That's exactly the reason why not only do I stay for a follow-up, but we're non-profit as well." Rei sighed, pressing her fingers to her temple. "What exactly happened?"

"A girl," Kazue said shakily, pointing to the balcony where they'd just been. "The same one from thirteen. She jumped from the balcony and just… disappeared… into the ground…" The obviously shaken woman was taken by her husband to sit on the couch.

"It's alright honey," he murmured reassuringly.

"It's _not_," she insisted loudly, drawing a man from his room on the first floor, rubbing his eyes sleepily. "Since that stupid woman can't do it, we've gotten professionals to come. They'll be here later today, so you can just pack up your things and leave."

Gripped in the woman's hand was a rabbit's foot and Kohaku tried her hardest not to roll her eyes. She thought she heard the woman mutter, "_Why'd we have to choose 23rdstreet?"_ but didn't say anything.

"I believe we paid you to stay in that room, so we have the right to stay for the rest of the morning, I believe," Reiko told the woman, turning on her heel to return to their room.

"You just be out by the time the _professionals_ are here!" Kazue called loudly, as the dark haired girl was already upstairs.

Kohaku gave a slight bow of her head before rushing upstairs to go back to bed. She found her older sister on their bed, staring down at her hands and shaking her head.

"_Professionals,_" she scoffed, looking up at Kohaku. "Ten bucks says they're some fake ghost hunting team." She fell over, hair spreading out around her head. Kohaku patted her leg.

"Come on, scoot over so I can actually sleep. It's way too early for… _anything_." Groaning as she eased herself onto the bed, Reiko settled herself before Kohaku turned the lights off, rolling over and attempting to sleep.

It didn't come.

Long after she had become aware of Reiko's loud snores, she sat up, moving to the window where she looked over the countryside, nostalgia overtaking her. _We've lived in the city for too long, _she thought, remembering the small town her family grew up in. Sighing, she threaded her fingers together as she eased herself into the chair by the window.

A flash of white passed her vision and she yelped softly in surprise, covering her left eye. Her eyes were wide as saucers, and she shook her head a little, wondering if it'd come back. _No way_, she thought frantically. _I'm mostly blind in that eye. It couldn't be coming back, could it?_

She shook her head. Climbing back into bed, she caught a few hours of sleep before the sun had risen all the way.

* * *

They were awoken, once again, by rather loud knocking, or rather banging, at their door. Sleepily, Kohaku rolled out of bed, landing on the floor. "Ow," she muttered, rubbing her soon to be bruised hip as she opened the door. She was met face to face with a partially scowling Kazue.

"The _professionals_ are here, so you get your and your fake friend's butts outta here." Running a hand through her hair, Kohaku turned to go wake up her half-asleep sister, proceeding afterwards to get dressed and run a brush through her hair, which was tangled into oblivion. Brushing her teeth quickly, she evicted the bathroom for her sister's use and began stuffing her few things into her bag, doing the same for Reiko's things, who as always had things scattered around the room. As she passed the different-colored carpet, she let out a very audible gasp. For a split second, blood stained the cream of the carpeting, but when she blinked it was gone. Growling to herself, she found her shoes and pulled them on.

She jumped as the pounding on the door began again, Kazue's harsh voice telling them to hurry. "They're ready to set up in there! Decent or not, get out!"

A frazzled Reiko came out of the bathroom, a toothbrush hanging from her mouth. "Yeah, hold on!" She spat the toothpaste into the sink and rinsed her mouth quickly before stuffing the remaining of her things in her bag. She grabbed the light green duffle and opened the door, Kohaku two steps behind her. Behind the old woman was a young teenage girl, short hair a brunette color.

"I can't exactly leave if you're in the way of the door," Reiko sighed. She was never a morning person, a complete opposite of Kohaku. As they exited into the hall they were met with a blond haired boy, and a black-haired girl.

"Ah, Hara-san! It's been a while."

"Indeed it has, Shizuma-san," the other girl replied, bringing a kimono sleeve to her mouth.

"Eh? You know her?" Kohaku asked, looking between her sister and the famous TV medium.

"Yeah, I did a show with her a few years ago." Reiko smiled politely.

"She's not a fake as you say, Satou-san," Masako informed the woman, her voice soft and light. "Shizuma-san and her sister have been doing smaller cases like yours for several years now."

Kohaku faintly heard the brunette girl behind her say something along the lines of, "I guess somewhere under the ice Masako has a heart as well…" Kohaku chucked, uncomfortable at the somewhat tense silence that ensued.

Spluttering, Kazue replied quickly, "Well she didn't do a very good job." Turning to leave, the two girls noticed a young dark haired boy standing in the middle of the hallway.

"I don't pay you to standing around chatting, Mai," he said, only giving the sisters a passing glance. The teenage girl mumbled something incoherent under her breath before stomping into the room, presumably to set up the camera that she'd held tightly to her chest.

Reiko passed the medium and the blond boy, and made to pass the dark haired teen.

"You're Shizuma Reiko, I assume?"

"Indeed."

"And your friend?"

"My sister and assistant of sorts, Kohaku."

The boy bowed his head a bit. "I see." Reiko turned her head, looking back at Kohaku.

"C'mon, let's go home." Kohaku came hesitantly, glancing back at the unfamiliar faces and coming to the balcony to find more unfamiliar faces downstairs. Standing by the balcony was a girl with long black hair. Kohaku went walking on, but an arm blocking her from going any father was in her way. Reiko stood in front of her, eyes wide. "That's her."

In a raspy whisper, Kohaku inquired, "Her? As in _her_ her?"

A small nod from her sister confirmed. Words began flowing from Reiko's mouth, a small prayer, but before she could finish, the girl ran towards the balcony, and burst through the railing, ghostly splinters of wood raining around her. They ran to the railing and looked down, but the girl was gone. The yelp from one of the people downstairs was from one of the supposed 'ghost hunters'; or whatever they were.

"See?" Jin yelled, pointing towards the two girls. "I said she was fake. She couldn't get rid of it like she said she would." For a second Kohaku felt like animals being pointed out at the zoo. Reiko simply sighed and began walking down the stairs, past the strangers. Kohaku caught up with her short legged pace quickly. A large black van was parked near the door.

"Equipment much?" Reiko muttered as she caught a glimpse of the inside, walking straight to the car and climbing in. Kohaku took another moment to peer in the van before running to the car.

-end-

**Sooo? What did you think? :D Did I do somewhat well? This chapter is pretty long, too. More so than usual anyway. I'll try to do longer chapters on this one, as much as I can anyway.**

_Next chapter: Visions! Headaches! Revelations that were already made by The Boss-man! Poor Reiko can't even get a word in!_


	2. Chapter 2: Fake

**CASE ONE**  
_Lonely Girl II_

Kohaku sat at the kitchen table, sipping her coffee. On the table, papers were spread out, various information on the inn from the day before written and printed on each sheet.

"I just don't get it," Reiko murmured, picking up a random sheet and reading its contents over. "The blessing should've worked. It's not like I'm _angry_ it didn't but-"

"You hate being called a fake," Kohaku filled in Reiko's unsaid thoughts, a small knowing smile lighting her face. "Just about anyone could see that by the way you stormed out yesterday."

"I did not _storm out_ yesterday," she defended herself, brushing a strand of short dark brown hair from her face. Glancing at Kohaku, she tilted her head slightly before giving in. "Yeah, I guess I did kinda storm out. But it was justified-wasn't it?" Holding her head in her hands, Reiko stared down at the light colored wooden table. "You were always the people person…" she groaned.

"Nah," Kohaku said, wincing at the hot liquid she'd sipped. "But you've always been a better liar than I am. You may not be a people person but you can fake being one." Reiko smiled at that. "I'd probably sit in a corner or something. Maybe it's just some lingering teenager left on me." She chuckled lightly.

Suddenly, her eyes narrowed, and she began glancing at each paper on the table. "I think I've got something," she answered Kohaku's unsaid question. "You remember how the girl jumped off the balcony?" She picked up a paper and scanned it quickly before gathering a few others and standing abruptly. "So why was there a pool of blood in the room? I mean, it could be anything but… it seems suspicious. Follow me." Sighing, Kohaku rose from her comfortable spot, setting her empty cup in the sink before grabbing a light jacket and following her sister.

"I dunno Rei, are we really going to go all the way back out there?" she asked skeptically, eyeing Reiko who was throwing her shoes on.

"Yup. I'm tired of being called a fake. So, I'll prove that I can do this myself."

* * *

A flash of white passed by Kohaku's left eye as she waited in the car for Reiko to do her business at the inn. A quick grey and red blur followed, and then the darkness in her left eye that she was used to. A pounding headache from behind her eye came after and the girl held her head in one hand, wincing. "The hell is happening?" she questioned quietly to herself, a hand resting on the door handle. She managed to grip it shakily in her fingers, pulling it and opening the door. Pushing herself out, she walked slowly and steadily to the inn, and although the door was only thirty feet or so from where they were parked, the increasing pain in her head made it seem like miles. When she finally reached the door and passed through it, her eyes snapped open to find the people from yesterday having some discussion.

But the strange part was that the headache was gone. Just disappeared.

_Great,_ she thought in annoyance. _Now I look like I stumbled in here for nothing._

"Hello, Kohaku," Reiko greeted, raising a hand. Muttering to herself, the girl straightened and walked over to her sister.

"Oh? So this is the little sis," said a man with sandy brown hair. I waved, a small smile forced on my face. Several moments passed before Reiko patted her back forcefully.

"It's alright, she's just been asleep for a while," she explained, sending me a sideways glance. My eyes swept over the group of people once more; I didn't see that boy with the black hair, and thankfully neither inn owner was present.

"I see you made some new friends," Kohaku attempted to joke. "I guess you've put me farther down on the priorities list again~"

"Perhaps."

"Ahh, you wound me, sister." Kohaku placed a hand to her forehead dramatically. "By the way, what is it that you figured out?"

"The girl," Reiko began. "I think, did not commit suicide."

"But we saw her ghost jumping from the balcony-"

"Running _through_ the balcony," the medium corrected. "If she committed suicide there, why was there the pool of blood in room thirteen?"

"Because it's cursed!" came the shrill voice of Kazue. "I've told you! It's that damned number!"

"I did some research. The girl, Namida Haruko, had parents with past histories of abuse. After she died here thirty years ago, her parents went missing, just like that. Absolutely nowhere to be found. This building used to be three different apartments, the one containing room thirteen belonging to the Namida family." Reiko paused for a moment. "There was an awful lot of blood on that carpet. I say-"

"Wait," Kohaku interrupted, holding a finger up. "I thought you said there wasn't any more blood on the carpet?"

"I lied to make you stop whining, dummy. I laid my bag on the stain to cover it up and when we went to eat, they replaced the carpet." Staring blankly at her sister, she continued. "I say that the parents tried to kill Haruko-chan, and-"

The red-haired woman suddenly spoke up. "But then that doesn't explain-"

"I'm _tired_ of being interrupted, damn it!" She didn't continue. "Anyway, what I believe is that the parents tried to kill her. Haruko-chan tried to run, but…" Reiko glanced up at the balcony. "She wasn't looking where she was going and broke through the railing."

For a moment it was silent before a voice rang out above them. "Impressive, Shizuma-san." Kohaku looked up to find the boy from before standing there. He walked down the stairs, coming to a stop before her. "You figured it out hours after we did." Reiko raised an eyebrow.

"What, so you're done here is what you're saying?"

"Something like that." The teenage boy smirked.

"You're Shibuya Kazuya, right? The… head of this whole operation?" Reiko gestured to the people standing around the room.

"That is correct."

"So, has the girl crossed over yet?" Reiko asked, glancing at Kohaku for a moment before returning her gaze to Kazuya.

"After she found that we knew her parents killed her, she went immediately. Your purification probably didn't work because she wanted someone to know," said the man with the sandy hair. "Poor girl."

All was quiet for a moment before they heard Kazue speak up, a frazzled Jin now by her side. "So that ghost's gone?" The woman looked like she was fighting not to roll her eyes at the supposed solution, but instead pointed towards the door. "All of you ghost busting kids can get out, then. You're too loud."

With that, the woman turned around and went back to their suite, her husband following.

"Mai, you did get all the things in the van, right?" the black haired teen asked the little brunette girl that Kohaku truly hadn't noticed standing there before.

"Yup! It's all in there, Naru!" she said cheerfully, seemingly used to her boss's air of superiority.

_Wait… Naru?_

"I thought you-" Reiko was cut off quickly.

"Since our work is done here, we can leave."

"Jeez, you don't have to interrupt people all the time, you egotistical, narcissistic, stuck-up jerk…" The rest of the girl's tirade was lost on their ears as she moved out of earshot.

"Isn't she a lovely girl," Kohaku commented under her breath as the other members of the team left.

"Indeed she is," Reiko sighed.

* * *

Once, home, Kohaku immediately kicked her shoes off and literally fell into the sofa, groaning. Reiko, after locking the door, came to sit on the chair adjacent to the one her sister was currently occupying.

"So, what was with you earlier? You had this weird look on your face when you came inside the inn."

"Ah, it was nothing," the girl said, a bit quicker than necessary. "I was just kind of dizzy and feeling sick for a second but it passed quickly."

"I see," the medium replied, somewhat skeptical. "Well, take care of yourself is all I can say I guess. I'm going to bed." Standing and stretching, the short haired woman went upstairs. Kohaku waited until she couldn't hear footsteps anymore to sit up herself, contemplating going to bed.

_A hand reached out towards her, stroking her face. It was gentle, the gesture not at all matching the gruff voice and what the owner of both was intending to do._

"_I'll have it," the man said, leaning down. His face was obscured by the darkness, but she could feel all too well what he looked like. "And you can do nothing-absolutely nothing-about it._

'_But I don't know this man…'_

"_Never," she replied, scratchy, unused voice feeling alien to her._

Gasping, Kohaku's hand flew up to her face, smacking over her left eye. Panting as her head began to feel like it'd been smashed by a car, she whimpered, slowly easing her body down onto the couch, pain exploding behind her eye.

The last time she remembered it being before she fell asleep was four thirty AM.

* * *

Pacing through the living room, a hand held to her head which was still aching, Kohaku anxiously waited for a call. Her cell phone held tightly in her other hand, a picture placed between her first hand and her head, the frazzled girl sat down for a moment, only to stand up and begin pacing again.

"_Reiko? Reiko, where are you?"_

"_I don't know where she is! She's just gone!" _

"_Please call me if you get absolutely anything."_

She stared down at herself and her sister, the picture wrinkled from her clutching it so tightly. "Rei, where _are_ you?" she whispered sadly, tears finding their way to her eyes. She quickly wiped them away, shaking her head. _Nope,_ she thought. _Not gonna cry. She wouldn't have wanted me to._

When Kohaku had finally awoken far into the afternoon, she's searched the house for any trace of her sister, to find nothing. No note or anything, and her keys and shoes were still where they should be.

Practically jumping out of her skin as the landline began to ring shrilly, Kohaku placed a hand over her chest where she could feel her heart beating rapidly. _The police department was going to call me on my cell though…_ Sighing dejectedly, she made her way over to the phone and picked it up, wondering who the call could be from.

"Hello?" she answered tiredly.

"Um, i-is this Shizuma Reiko?" came a timid female's voice over the phone. "The medium?"

Realizing it was a client, Kohaku habitually answered, "This is her assistant." Quickly, she explained, "Reiko-san isn't able to take any cases right now. Please leave your number and we'll-"

"You don't understand!" the woman practically yelled, and with a jump Kohaku pulled the phone from her ear, wincing as it stirred the ache in her head. "There's something _evil_ here-" A sigh. "My husband and I own a shop within our home. It's a little trinket shop. We've heard pitter pattering through the ceiling-like little steps of an animal or something-"

"Have you considered an infestation?"

"Yes! Of course, but-but when we went to check it out in the attic, we saw this creature, this black creature with yellow eyes. It hissed at us, like a cat and then just… faded. Among other things." The woman let out a sob, and she could hear a strong male voice in the background-probably her husband. "Like-like things in the shop will start hovering in mid-air and fly off and break! And in th-the basement, this black mass, that's shaped like a human will appear. And… please! Please help us!"

Hearing the woman in such distress made her sad, but there was nothing she could do. As politely as she could, she told the woman, "I'm very sorry for what's been happening at your shop. Unfortunately, something had happened to Reiko-san and she can't take cases right now. But like I said, if it's possible, I'll take your number and get back to you as soon as we can start taking cases again. Okay?"

Sniffling, the woman gave Kohaku her number and hung up. The woman's sobs echoed in her ears and she had the passing feeling that the woman's case was worse than she thought.

-end-

**I was going to wait a week to put this chapter up, but I just couldn't wait... Anyway, was this one any good? Please tell me, I need to know… (sort of). **

_Next chapter: Mai, you're so clumsy! __Hey SPR! What're you doing here?_


	3. Chapter 3: Joint Project

**CASE TWO**  
_Cat Scratch Fever I_

Days later, nothing had been heard about Reiko. Kohaku was incredibly worried and barely slept or ate. The police tried to keep her updated but there weren't really many updates to inform her of.

Walking through Shibuya, a bag of oranges in hand, the blond tried to find her friend in the midst of the busy crowd. Kira was always late, but Kohaku had no right to say anything, as her friend would always relentlessly tease her about her having no sense of direction whatsoever. _Maybe that's what I need right now,_ she thought, sighing inwardly. _Someone to help lighten the mood._ Lost In her thoughts, Kohaku bumped into a girl running along the sidewalk. Stumbling back a few steps, Kohaku looked down to see Mai, the girl from the ghost hunting team.

"Oh-you," Kohaku, mumbled, bowing in apology. Mai did the same.

"What have you and your sister been up to?" the brunette asked lightheartedly. Kohaku's face immediately fell, and her head hung.

"She's… well, she's missing."

"Oh no! That's awful!" Mai looked truly sad to see the woman had been gone.

"Yup," Kohaku sighed. "She's been gone the past few days, and the police have pretty much nothing. The only thing they know at this point is that she was probably kidnapped, but that much is obvious."

"I hope she's found alright," Mai told her sympathetically, patting the older girl's shoulder.

Attempting a weak smile, Kohaku replied, "Yep! I'll make sure to hit her pretty hard for worrying me like that…" Brushing a hand against her face, she realized she was crying. "Ack! Sorry for dumping all this on you so suddenly, Mai-chan."

"Oh no, it's alright!" Mai smiled. "I know you don't know me that well, but if you ever want to talk sometime or something, here's my number." She quickly found a little paper scrap and a pen from her school bag and jotted it down, signing her name under it. "Here." Kohaku took the paper graciously, her smile turning genuine.

"Thanks so much, Mai-chan," she told the younger girl. "It does mean a lot. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a friend to meet."

"And I have a narcissistic boss to please," Mai said, rolling her eyes playfully. Kohaku managed a laugh, running off and waving.

_Really though, Mai_, she thought as she spotted Kira in the crowd. _Thanks._

At three in the morning the next day, Kohaku restlessly paced the floor of her sister's bedroom. Nothing had been heard about Reiko, and she was beginning to believe she wouldn't be found. Sighing, she flopped on the full sized bed, tears forming in her eyes.

_Reiko,_ she thought, sobs breaking through her lips after a week of silence. _Where are you?_

Every worry, every fear seemed to pour from her eyes, and after being reduced to a sniveling, shaking mess, Kohaku weakly pushed herself up to splash water on her face. Passing the window, the sniffling girl made her way slowly to the bathroom.

Something outside caught her eye.

Backing up to the window, she saw a dark shape slowly walking up the driveway, uneven gait slowing it even more.

A hand pressed to her mouth, Kohaku raced down the stairs as quickly as she could, grabbing a baseball bat from the closet. She cursed, louder than necessary when a stack of shoes toppled over.

Tripping her way towards the door, she stood beside it, fear lighting her puffy eyes. _Not me too. Oh god, why me?_

The poor terrorized girl jumped ten feet in the air when whoever it was slammed against the door. She'd bitten her tongue to keep quiet, and metallic blood was seeping into her mouth. Whimpering, she slowly raised her hand to the doorknob, her chest pounding. Backing away to offer room for the door, Kohaku turned the knob and swung the door open, bat raised above her head.

"Re-reiko?

The least she could say was that she was surprised to find her sister slumped against the screen door, panting. Opening the screen slowly and catching her sister's body as it fell, Kohaku sat Reiko's head in her lap.

The first thing she noticed was the greasiness of her sister's dark hair. She could barely see with the lighting to low, but from what she could feel, her sister had not bathed once during the time she was missing.

Smacking her face lightly, Kohaku whispered gently, "Rei? Reiko, say something. Come on."

"Nnn…"

"There you go!" Slipping an arm around her sister's waist, she pulled the older woman up, struggling to get her to stand. Keeping in mind the limp her sister had been sporting, Kohaku half helped, half dragged her sister to the couch in the living room, where she ungracefully released her sister's weight onto the plush velvet. Wincing as Reiko let out a pained groan, she let out a few hushed apologies before running to start a warm bath. Reiko's arms were covered in little cuts and nicks, and there was a deep-looking gash in her side, visible through the slash in her thin shirt. Dirt covered just about every inch of her; therefore, simply trying to clean her off with a rag wasn't an option. Some of her wounds were bound to get infected if they weren't cleaned immediately, if infection hadn't gotten to them already.

Racing back down to her sister, Kohaku resumed their previous position, helping Reiko limp up the stairs. When they were finally in the bathroom, Kohaku turned the water off quickly, sitting Reiko down and beginning to strip her.

"Reiko, what happened?" Kohaku asked, facing her sister, frowning with worry.

"I-I was kidnapped," she said with difficulty, Kohaku helping her up and into the tub. "By a man. I don't… I didn't see his face. But he had a very deep, scratchy voice…"

Kohaku froze completely, eyes wide. _Nope,_ she thought immediately. _It… can't be._

"You're going to be okay. You may be old, but you'll get through this!"

Reiko lifted her arm to hit her younger sister, but fell short from exhaustion, the tired limb making a splash as it fell. "I'm only twenty-four, Kohaku. I'm not old."

Giving a little smile, Kohaku began gently cleaning her sister's wounds.

* * *

Three days later, Reiko was done with doctor's appointments, police questioning, and catching up on food and sleep. Her wounds were still bandaged, and she required crutches for her heavy limp from her broken ankle. The gash in her side needed antibiotic medication, as it was infected; thankfully, not too much.

The two were sitting in the living room, watching TV when suddenly Kohaku spoke up.

"Several days ago, a woman called about a case. Do you think you're up for it?"

"Definitely! I'm sick of being stuck in this house…" Stretching her arms above her, Kohaku stood and left to find the phone. Returning with the device in hand, she plopped on the couch again, dialing the number as she read it from the paper. Handing the phone to her sister as it rang, she informed her quickly of what was going on.

"Ah-hello? This is Shizuma Reiko. I understand you called about a haunting?"

Tuning out her sister's conversation, Kohaku stared down at her hands, a little smile playing on her lips. Her sister was back; now she'd have to make extra sure she didn't lose her again.

"Eh? Already…" Letting out a little cough, Reiko continued. "You want me as well?"

Over the phone, Kohaku faintly heard the woman loudly say something, but it was too muffled to decipher.

"I see. We'll, uh… be there tomorrow." Grabbing a pen on the end table, Reiko began scribbling on the inside of her arm. Kohaku leaned over to catch a glimpse of it and saw an address. "Yes. Uh-huh. Goodbye." Pulling the phone away from her ear, Reiko clicked the button and sighed, leaning back. "She already hired someone else, but she wants me to come in as well. I think I have a good idea who she hired."

* * *

"Yup."

"Certainly."

"I knew it."

The sisters stood in front of Hanazono Aika's home. Already there was a familiar black van, _SPR_ printed on the side. The back was open and Mai stood there, struggling to lift what looked like a shelf. Running up behind her, Kohaku slipped her arms under the heavy metal, lifting it above the short girl's head. The high schooler jumped, nearly banging her head on the shelves as she whirled around to see the blond girl.

"Kohaku!" she exclaimed, smiling. Looking behind her to see Reiko, her smile grew. "You found her! That's great!"

"Ah, yeah…" Kohaku turned around to find Reiko behind her, smiling bashfully. "Here, let me help y-"

"_You,_" Kohaku cut her off quickly, "are not doing anything but going inside and sitting down." Reiko quickly frowned.

"Jeez, I'm not helpless," she muttered, but made her way inside to meet the Hanazonos anyway. Smiling after her sister, Kohaku waved, just to rub it in a little.

"So, what happened?" Mai asked, turning back to the blond girl.

"Ah, it's sort of a long story. I'll tell you later."

"Hey, it's you again." Kohaku whirled around to find the sandy-haired guy from the other day standing behind her.

"Oh, that's Takigawa Housho. He's a monk from Mount Koya," Mai explained, a little smile on her face.

"A monk?" the blond asked, confused. "I thought monks had a completely different look about them…"

"Ah, well, I'm a monk on the side you see… I primarily play in a band." He rubbed the back of his head a bit bashfully, and a smile found its way to her face involuntarily.

"An instrument-playing monk. Don't see those every day…" A full out laugh escaped her lips, and she waved her hand in the air, dismissing the joke. "Sorry, sorry. It's a pretty weird combination after all."

"I guess it is," he went along. "You can call me Bou-san by the way-everyone else does."

"I'll do that then, _Bou-san_."

Turning around, Kohaku began walking inside, the shelf's edges digging into her fingers. Gritting her teeth, she hobbled inside the house and set the equipment on the stairs before standing up straight and stretching until she heard her back pop. Hearing footsteps behind her, Kohaku turned to find 'Naru' standing behind her.

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't stand in my way," he said coolly, and Kohaku obediently moved to the side. The teenager stepped over the metal and began his ascent. He stopped halfway, and looked down to the blond girl. "If you're going to carry our equipment, carry it the whole way." Kohaku scoffed quietly. _Well isn't he high-and-mighty…_ The president of SPR continued up the steps, and once he was out of sight the blond girl began lifting the company's equipment again.

-end-

**Ahh, I wasn't sure how else to end this chapter… D: Hope this is good enough. C:**


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